Apex
by clannix12
Summary: To be a shinobi is to be one who endures. What does it mean to be a trainer? Rated M for Themes.


I do not own Naruto or Pokemon. Thank you for taking the time to read my story.

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A midnight sphere rocketed past, causing an explosion that sent dust and debris shooting everywhere across the battlefield. "Again Zigzagoon!" A maniacal grin slowly creeping across the trainers' face. Yes! Finally, he could taste it, taste the sweetness that victory brought. Today was his day. Today was the day Kiba Inuzuka would knock the smug smirk from the face of that wretched blond once and for all!

"Keep dodging Rockruff! Don't stop moving for a second!" Naruto Uzumaki shouted to his current partner. Today had been a weird day for our blond protagonist. Today Naruto found himself on the wrong end of his mother's wraith when he woke up this morning. He didn't even do anything this time! Honest! And now Naruto is quickly finding himself on the back end of this battle, to Kiba of all people!

"_Stop! Slow down, breathe" Slowly_ the nerves stilled, and the situation slowed as Naruto relaxed. He analyzed his opponent, a new breed of Zigzagoon that had both a dark and normal typing and its special attacks seemed to pack a punch. An idea began to form in Naruto's mind as he saw this. It seemed to be quick on its feet, a small smirk started to play across the blond, _"We will just have to be quicker."_

"Use Quick attack to create some space Rockruff. Then use Rock Polish!" The quadruped, canine Pokémon dashed off, its light-brown coat shifting in the wind. "Ruff! Rockruff!" blurted out of the creature's dark brown muzzle as it got to a safe spot and slowly coursed its energy, causing a light white sheen to form over its form. The light lasted a second before wearing off, revealing a more polished body that would reduce the drag in its following movements

_'Hook'_ "Come on Kiba! Where is all that bravado from before!" Our cheeky blond shouted!"

_'Line' _This caused the anger and ire to rise slowly in his opponent. "Just you wait! Zig hit them with the best crunch you got!

_'And sinker'_

"Wait till he gets close, use your new speed to surprise him to get out of the way at the last moment and hit him with stone edge." Naruto whispered out, getting a Growl-infused "Ruff!" in return!

Zigzagoon ran at Rockruff, dark energy forming in front of it as it slowly gained more and more ground. Zigzagoon was upon him quick and moved in for the finished blow when it happened!

As quick as the wind, Rockruff was out of the zone of the attack, causing Zigzagoon to fly past. It did not end there however as just as fast as the Rockruff dodged him; he was on top of him. As it began standing up on its two paws it breathed in its name and power "Rock!" just to release it all as the front paws came slamming down onto his opponent with the mightiest "Ruff!" that the small creature could muster.

Rocks were sent spiking up piercing the Zigzagoon as it was critically hit. Blood began to leak from the wounds, and it was evident from his sight that the back lacks were most likely broken. It was unlikely the mon was dead but from its still movement, it was definitely unconscious.

"Zigzagoon!" Kiba cried out! Gripping the railing around him like his life depended on it.

"The Match is over! Zigzagoon is unconscious and no longer able to battle! The match belongs to Naruto Uzumaki and his partner Rockruff. Please recall and return the Pokémon to the instructor." Iruka Umino the instructor for his class at Pokémon Academy announced.

The crowd that was made up of the rest of the students of the class cheered! He would have normally joined them in their excitement but today his victory was a little less profound. Hell, up until the end he was losing and had at one point almost lost! This was not a time to celebrate, this was a time to work! The harmless creature that a normal Zigzagoon has caused him to severely underestimate his opponent and he almost paid for it when this different and new typing for the creature displayed it to pack quite a punch!

Hopefully, they would go over more Pokémon and their typing's in class, but he would worry about that later as his class was starting to come towards him to congratulate him on his victory and to cheer Kiba upon his loss.

* * *

Pokémon Academy, the premiere primary school in Konohagakure that was in the land of fire. It was a trainer school that you could attend when you turned 10. Schooling would last for 6 years and the school would do their best to prepare you for the harshness and realities that come with being a trainer. Everything from what Pokémon are indigenous to what areas of the world and what their typing would be to how to make specialized food for them and care for any injuries that could occur.

For his class, it had started at around 50 or so kids however that was cut down greatly after the first month. Konoha's academy exposes you to the harshness of the world quickly and they leave nothing to chance.

_Flashback_

"_Good Morning Class!' Iruka preached. A happy and blissful smile dancing across his face. "Today is a special day. Today is the day you all get to take care of your first Pokémon!" Cheers erupted from the class; dreams were beginning to come true! The shouts got so loud the building began to shake!_

"_QUIET OR YOU WON'T GET ONE!" A pin could have dropped. "Good, now Pokémon will begin to be distributed to each of you. For the next month you will do your best to take care of and bond with this Pokémon. They are all the same so don't worry about not getting the Pokémon you may or may not have wanted, this is just to see how well you can take care of another creature. You may release it when you get outside. Enjoy the rest of your day class!" The entire class rushed up and grabbed a ball, me included. I ran up grabbed a ball as fast as I could and booked it home._

"_Mom! Mom! Mom! Look!" I shouted as I tumbled through the door to our home! I raised the red ball up in my hand, "My first Pokémon!"_

_Kushina Uzumaki slowly rounded the corner of the house to see her son laid out on the floor with one arm sticking up, holding a bright red ball in his hand. A smile couldn't help but grow on her at seeing how excited her son looked._

"_Well, what are you waiting for, let's see what you got!" She spoke with a click of her tongue!_

_Moment of truth_

"_Goo Pokémon!"_

"_Buneary! Bun Bun Buneary!_

_The smile that was on Kushina's faced nearly melted off as quick as it had come, she had forgotten about this…. tradition. She had to steel her features though, no matter how much she may detest this practice it was for the better._

"_Oh my god mom, isn't it the cutest! It's so cuddly, can we scan it and learn more about it? I wonder what it's favorite food is."_

"_Hey Buneary, I'm Naruto. Do you want to be friends?" I slowly stuck my hand out to it as to not startle it but declare my intentions._

_It looked at my face for a brief second before slowly glancing down to my outstretched hand. The Pokémon paused for a moment before jumping and shouting its name for joy as it launched itself into the chest our blond._

_This interaction was mirrored throughout the village as young children quickly fell in love with the loveable and friendly new Pokémon_

_Everything was going perfect for the next month. Nothing could have been better for the kids, especially for the kids whose parents were not trainers such as himself. This was everything they dreamed of and more until the last Friday of the month._

_The class was happily chatting away. I was sitting next to my good friend Ino. We were trading stories about all the fun things that we had done with our new friend and she went even further to tell me some of the psychics her family is raising and breeding such as the Ralts and Abra line. Boasting about the intelligence of psychic types and how strong her father's Hypno had become. I was about to say it had no chance against any of my dad's flying types but before I could get my rebuttal off, Iruka walked in and began class._

"_Class" Iruka shouted. That was different, he was being direct with him. I slowly began to straighten up in my seat. "Today you will be given an exam to see if you have what it takes to become a trainer. If you do not pass you will be removed from the academy, effective immediately._

_Outrage. The whole class erupted. There was no way this could be true! Was the prevailing thought but only outrage was sourced. Yells and screams of injustice and unfairness were growing until Iruka could not take it anymore. "Listen up! This is the best academy in the nation, hell the entire elemental continent. We boast trainer survival rates of over 80%, that's 15% better than the closest nation. If you want to be a trainer of Konohagakure and do this village proud then you need to be the best because this village will only support the best. If you do not have what it takes to do the job, then we do not have the time to teach you. Now, wait for your name to be called."_

"_Aburame, Shino!"_

_And that's how the process went. Slowly kids began to trickle out of the classroom, none ever came back._

"_Uchiha, Sasuke"_

_Shit. He was up next. His sight slowly drifted towards Ino. Their eyes slowly met, and it was only broken from a nervous chuckle from Naruto. "Ha-ha, we got this Ino-Chan, No sweat! This will be a piece of cake, dattebayo!"_

_His nervous tick coming out showed how truly wound up he was, he hadn't said that in 3 years! The chuckle from Ino calmed his nerves slightly._

"_Uzumaki, Naruto!"_

_I stood up slowly from my seat. 'You got this' I heard Ino gently whisper. A quick nod to her and I was on my way to a new class._

_The walk stretched on for ages. What was once a short walk across the hallway felt like a march through a desert. What if he was not cut out to be a trainer? What if he failed the test!_

_Those thoughts came to a standstill as he entered the classroom to see Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Hokage and current leader of Konohagakure. His father Minato said he was the strongest generalist in the world. Awe-inspiring heroics were told of how his trusted starter, an Infernape named Enma, that would lead his unstoppable team to victory. Sitting next to him on his right was my teacher Iruka._

"_Naruto!" Hiruzen chuckled out, smoke slowly puffing from the pipe that sat idle between his aged lips. "It has been quite some time since I last saw you. I hope some of your mothers more… exotic Pokémon are behaving themselves. Enough about that though, are you ready for your exam?"_

_I went ramrod straight, almost clicking my shoes together with a salute at the same time "Yes sir!"_

"_Good, now could you please release the buneary we gave you last month."_

_Doing as instructed, I grabbed the red ball from my hip and slowly enlarged the ball as I picked it up in one graceful motion. I rolled the ball out of my hand and with a flash and a shout of his name, buneary was by his side. The creature looked around for a moment before noticing his friend by his side and quickly jumped up into his arms. "Bunn Bunn!_

"_I see you and buneary have become close friends" the Hokage stated with a neutral tone. "Have you been taking good care of your friend?" My eyes immediately went to buneary as I answered "Of course! He's my friend."_

"_That's good, now please take the knife that is on the table and kill the buneary."_

_Naruto's world froze._

"_Excuse me?"_

"_Yes of course" coughing slightly Sarutobi Hiruzen straighten up, preparing to give a rehearsed speech he had who knows how many times before. "To be a trainer is a serious deal, especially for our village. We boast the highest success rate and that is not an easy thing to say and it does not come without its own sacrifices. Being a trainer, it is not a kid's game. When you leave these walls to explore the world and complete jobs, the only thing protecting you from death are the monsters you call friends. You need to be willing to do what must be done to protect yourself, and sometimes that is not easy. Just like right now. Your dream as a trainer or the life of your new friend, you must decide and decide now you must!_

_A statue. That is what he was right now. He could not move; he could not think. How could they! How could they ask him to kill something that is defenseless? He had even named his buneary Blackjack! Now they wanted him to kill him. Or to give up his life aspirations? Did his parents have to do this?_

"_Did… did my parents have to do this?_

"_All trainers in this village have completed one form of this procedure or another, yes."_

_Well, there was no getting out of this._

_Slowly Naruto approached the table, was he going to do this? He kept second-guessing himself, but his body wouldn't stop moving towards the table. The machete was in his hand and was beginning to be raised above his head when he stopped. This is it? Could he live with killing his own friend? Would he choose his new friendship over his aspirations?_

_No. He would be a trainer. He would be the very best there ever was. He promised himself it long ago when he had lost nearly everything and there was no giving up or going back now. He would do what it took to become the best and nothing would stop him from his ascent to greatness._

_Buneary looked up at him with its small black eyes, whose pupils were like little suns shining up at me in purity. It slowly reached for me, almost as if it wanted me to hold it one last time. I couldn't. Tears were already streaming down my face._

"_I'm… I'm sorry blackjack"_

_*shllllinnnkkk*_

_The machete cut through the air and immediately after buneary knew no more. Blood sprayed across the floor and some had gotten on his hands and clothes. He couldn't stop shaking or crying and when the applause followed shortly after from the proctors, he felt hollow; numb._

"_Uzumaki Naruto! Congratulations on passing the exam. Go home and rest, we know this has been an extremely stressful time. In approximately one weeks' time, we will reconvene with the other students that have passed such as yourself. Be ready, you'll receive" a slight chuckle interrupted Sarutobi as if an inside joke was being told "your starter. Until then, Dismissed"_

_If he heard them, he never said anything as his form slowly stumbled out of the classroom, wondering if he had made the right choice._

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